Mike McGowan SOC

As promised. Here are 4 short videos that show the 'nuts and bolts' of the HyperCam3... First, how it works: The collar: Low Mode: Balance: For those of you that have already said you wanted one you can send the $1500 to my PayPal: mcgowanpro@aol.com For those of you that asked, for an extra $50 you can have your company name engraved on the top plate.

Okay.... So I brought the new rig on my last job with the intention of taking some 'down time' and putting a camera on it and shooting some iphone video. Unfortunately there was no 'down time' in either of the 18 hour days. I'm off to the rental house Wednesday to set the rig and shoot some video. @Thomas, 4' was just me guessing. It has the same range as the arm does (I guessed about 2 feet below center and 2 feet above). Thinking about it now, it's probably more like a foot and a half each direction? Anybody know for sure? Here is a link to a VERY CHEESY behind the scenes video they did on one of my shows. It is a few years old and has some footage the behind the scenes guy took with his 5D. It does show the old rig (the HC2) and how it works (kind of): These are all the old pictures but basically you are doing this: http://www5.snapfish.com/snapfish/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=9014205025/a=15663314025_15663314025/otsc=SHR/otsi=SALBlink/COBRAND_NAME=snapfish/ instead of this: http://www5.snapfish.com/snapfish/slideshow/AlbumID=9010622025/PictureID=381418754025/a=15663314025_15663314025/otsc=SHR/otsi=SPIClink/COBRAND_NAME=snapfish/ Here is a link to my action demo reel. Not every shot was done on the HyperCam but all the moving shots were. Wednesday night with any luck there will be some video.

Quickly realizing that while some of you have seen my old rig (the HC2) and know what this is, most of you would have no idea what I'm talking about. I'll put together a proper description of the unit and post it tomorrow.

After many years of tweaking, I finally have a piece of equipment that not only works great but looks pretty cool too. It's my 3rd generation HyperCam. After being asked how fast, low and crazy I could go with my steadicam mounted to various vehicles, I decided to engineer something that was a little more purpose built. Basically the idea was to use existing vehicle mounts and existing steadicam arm technology but put the camera on something that wasn't quite as at the mercy of inertia. I used the first prototype on a chase sequence I did for 'All About the Benjamins'. I then modified it and used the second version on '2 Fast 2 Furious' and 'Transporter 2' and have been using that version until now. It always worked pretty well but definitely looked a bit (home made) and lacked adjustability. After getting feed back from several other steadicam operators, along with my own experiences, I spent some time and money at a machine shop and came up with my HyperCam3 (HC3). The HC3 can go into proper low mode and can change dampeners for heavier and lighter cameras. It also has a more modular design and more built in safety features. I'm charging $1500 per unit for the first run of 10. Please let me know if you are interested or have any questions. I think I have 4 of the first 10 already spoken for. I have a few pictures of the HC3 prototype. They first run will have a few slight design modifications but will look essentially like this. More pictures to follow.

I don't want to knock your creativity but there is a reason they make some of this stuff. And the people that do, spend a great deal of time and money to figure out how to make it work properly (which is why they charge so much for the finished product). The phrase 'right tool for the job' is very important to steadicam. It's not a dolly, a super techno crane or a hand held camera, it's a steadicam. Those other tools can do things a steadicam can not and the steadicam can do stuff none of those tools can. The AR is a very specialized piece of equipment that takes a lot of skill and time to learn to use properly. To your specific question, I have balanced my rig neutral and flipped it in the middle of a take for a music video (at the part the 'artist' started crawling on the floor). This works great if they are happy to flip the image in post or use the image upsidedown but it's not the same thing as an AR. You do not want to make a habbit of doing 'half ass' shots like I just mentioned unless you want make a habbit of doing half ass shoots. So short answer is that there are probably a few ways you could 'rig' it and get low to high shots in the same take but the best way to do it is to use a piece of equipment that was designed for the job. My 2 cents.

Unless the workshop is different from all the rest, you are totally qualified to take it. In my class in 1998, there were several film newbies and at least one operating newbie (me). It's designed to teach you about the steadicam, how it works, what it can do and give you an idea about whether or not you might be interested in doing it for a living. Take it and enjoy!

Sold (14 offers in less than 12 hours). I went with the first phone call. Thanks!

Selling my Preston 2. Totally complete package; Handset, Transmitter, Microforce, MDR 2, Seperate Iris Control Unit, Three Motors, Charger, Batteries and more cables and brackets than you will know what to do with. Comes with Pellican Case. $10,000.00. Firm. Unit is serviced every year by Preston. Contact Mike McGowan at: 305-606-6844 or mcgowanpro@aol.com

Loose but I kept it tight for a year or so at some point and it didn't really make much difference imo...

Good topic. It took me quite a while to figure out I wasn't god's gift to the set. I was never a dick but I did have WAY more ego than any 3 or 4 good steadicam operators should. A lot of that was learned and fixed just with time in the saddle so to speak. Though I still have to catch myself and 'ratchet it down a notch' from time to time. I'd site being humble, quiet (so when you do speak it has some weight), easy going, happy, professional (but a bit of humor at the right time sure does help), having a strong work ethic (in 20 years in the business I've been late 2 times, once was because I was in a minor fender bender and once was because of a major accident that stopped traffic in front of me for like an hour). Also, it helps a lot (and this may be obvious) to be frickin awesome and able to compose great shots and technically nail them consistently. It's also a useful trick to be able to read people (actors, directors, dp's) and know how to politic your way around the set. We also touched on the issue of holding vs docking. I may have a different spin on that one. First I'd say that how much you hold and how much you dock depends greatly on the job. Feature (high budget, low budget), TV, commercial, music video, reality TV, documentary, etc. As a general rule however, I like my stand far away from the set. I pick up the rig when I'm ready and shoulder it until it's time to point it. I understand docking between takes for example but I generally prefer to keep the rig on and stay 'in the shot'. I keep my cart far off set because when I dock, I want to really dock, stretch, eat, drink, pee, switch shoes and get away from the 'heavy breathers', they have a way of harshing my mellow. I'd also say that a decent part of my client base hires me because I just wear the rig, all day, no complaints. I've always been in good shape, I run, climb, fight MMA and I work out at the gym about 5 days a week. With a standard, non 3d, alexa type rig, I can wear it for hours and it doesn't effect my operating one bit. Obviously if I'm running with the rig, doing stairs or something like that, I'll dock more often but I just prefer to keep the rig on. I'd actually argue that unless I have the rig off for more than 5 minutes, it's more work to dock and lift than it is to shoulder and stand. But that's my personal way of looking at it. I wouldn't say it's necessarily right, it's just right for me.

Interesting read.... I have a friend of a friend who is the son of the CEO of Sony. I was talking to him about 3 years ago at a mutual friends wedding. We got to talking about the music industry, business in general and he started bitching about people stealing music. He was all up in arms about Napster and the like. Now mind you this was 3, maybe 4 years ago. I can see getting upset with Napster in 1995 but in 2008?!?!? I bring it up only to illustrate this point, the music industry was woefully slow to adapt to the internet and music. As a result, the music industry has gone through a major change (not for the better). While I agree that things like this 'Poptent' really suck, especially for professionals like us who make our livings with our experience, it's also really important to future proof yourselves (and our industry).

If you are going to wear 'regular shoes' I also love the SuperFeet inserts. They totally rock!

You could probably get up to a pretty good speed but I do not think it's the right tool for the job. Griptrix or something like that. If that's not available, so many key grips have an atv or rhino or something like that they can rig with a hard mount. Even wearing the rig on the back of a golf cart would be a better option.

Tnx brother... Cool site. I've always had success with my SOC Active member card, even with the ones that are picky. But $12 bucks is money well spent if it saves you hundreds at the airport.

I just have 3 gold to v adaptors for the occasions I need to use V's. They work great and you can buy them at B&H pretty cheep.

I would imagine I’m not the only one who occasionally has sore or tired feet. If I have a big stair day my glutes tend to get sore, a lot of running and I’ll have sore quads, a lot of backing up, sore calves and a long holding the rig day (like say a live event) and my shoulders (traps) are pretty tired. But no matter what kind of day it is, if I use the rig for any length of time my feet are usually pretty run down. I would say that my posture is pretty good, I stretch regularly, work out several times a week, use quality socks and switch shoes at least once a day if not more. When shooting ‘Step Up 4’ (in 3d) I would some times wear 4 different pairs of shoes in one day. I use a combination of running shoes and high tops with different insoles. I particularly like Spenco and Super Feet. Muscle fatigue is pretty much part of the job. When I’m not working, I go bare foot as much as possible. When I’m shooting on the beach, I’m usually bare foot as well. But bare feet are not really a great movie set choice and they are for sure not OSHA approved. But letting your feet ‘do their thing’ is both good for performance and good for your body, you just need to be careful with them as they pretty much make your mortgage payment. So I saw (on this forum I think) a post about toe shoes (the shoes that have pockets for your feet). I have since seen a few people (not on movie sets) wearing them. Everybody that was using them had good things to say about them. I went ahead and got a pair of the Fila’s and wore them around the house for a day. I really liked the way they felt and I really liked the added control you get from actually using your whole foot as it was designed to be used. I then decided to wear them to work and try them out on set. I had a commercial on Friday and a commercial on Saturday. I brought (as I usually do) a few pairs of shoes and socks so I could change as soon as I thought the toe shoes were not cutting it. I also found out late Thursday night that my Friday call was a hard night so I would basically be going from 4pm Friday night to 6 or 7pm Saturday night. Both jobs were all steadicam, all day. The second day was actually a 60 second steadicam 1er that ended with a step on to a crane for an up, up and away. I started the first shot (long fast back up down a hall way) with my new toe shoes and was immediately impressed with the extra control I had wearing them. Now there is virtually no ankle support (which is kind of the idea, letting your body parts do their job) but it not only didn’t bother me, it actually felt really good to let my feet do their thing. I also quickly noticed that my feet were not as tight and crampy as they would normally be after a few shots. If I were to make a critique of the shoes it would be lack of padding on the soles. They have a true sole with a really nice tread, good and sticky and thick enough that you could step on glass and not cut your feet. There is just almost no padding so the soles of your feet (particularly carrying a steadicam on concrete) really get a work out. I ended up wearing the shoes straight through for about 36 hours. It was the best my feet have every felt after a long steadicam day and felt as mobile as I do when I’m bare foot on the beach. I now wear them pretty much all day every day at work. So far they are super kick ass awesome. I highly recommend everybody that does this for a living getting a pair. Even if you can’t or don’t wear them all the time, they are an excellent way to give your foot a break, even if it’s only for a shot or two. My 2Cents.

If you are used to using the iris rod bracket and sliding base plate (i do that all the time) and you are just looking for a bit of weight, why not go with a zoom sliding base plate (one of those big 18"? ones).

I'd say let whoever takes the job at the rate take the job at the rate. Let them get what they pay for. I also think that having an agent pretty much solves all these rate issues. An agent = best business decision you will ever make. My 2 cents......... P.S. When I was first starting out (1998) doing steadicam, if I had been offered a show for the 1998 version of that rate, I would have jumped on it! They would have got a guy who had a great attitude, worked super hard and wasn't very good at operating or doing steadicam. So if they want a rookie, maybe they should be able to pay $65 an hour.

Under the truck we were only going like 20-30 mph and it was really the other vehicles doing the crazy driving part, the semi just drove straight. Could have used a remote head if we had one. The story boards called for a hard mounted camera and when I saw the action (one car on each side) I thought a whip from one car to the other would be cooler. It took me less than ten minutes to rig for the shot and I was done shooting it in 20. It would have taken a good remote head tech more time than that just to set up the camera. As for the arm car rig thing, it's called a HyperCam. You can see some stuff I've done with it on my web site: miamidp.com. It's the first link on 'recent work'. With any luck the HyperCam plate will be available for sale soon (we are currently machining a gen 3 plate with newer cooler handles) and are planning on selling them. Glad you liked the photos, thanks!

i had a few more but im at my photo upload limit..... ive probably used it to save my live hundreds of times and maid my mortgage payment hanging in it for hundreds of hours. it's a good harness.

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A few pictures of the petzl at work